|
Judge wants state to end tobacco stops during suit |
|
|
|
|
Main NEWS Section -
Oklahoma Tribal Nations
|
|
Tulsa, Oklahoma (AP) 5-09
Vehicles used by the Muscogee (Creek) Nation to transport tobacco should not be stopped until a ruling is made on part of a lawsuit filed against the Oklahoma Tax Commission by the tribe, a federal judge says.
U.S. District Judge Terence Kern made the request of the Tax Commission during a hearing on May 20.
“I hope this doesn’t cause a flurry of vans filled with illegal cigarettes traveling the roads late at night, but I would ask that you stop this,” Kern said.
Agents working with the Oklahoma Highway Patrol stopped two tribal trucks on May 13 and May 15, seizing a total of $108,000 worth of cigarettes during the stops. The tribe sued on Friday, claiming the stops occurred without a warrant, without the consent of the truck drivers and without probable cause.
The lawsuit alleges the state violated the Fourth and Fourteenth amendments to the U.S. Constitution. The tribe wants the judge to rule that the state cannot seize tribal property while it is being transported for American Indian commerce.
The tribe also wants the seized cigarettes returned before their shelf life expires.
The Tax Commission said the state would have lost $42,000 worth of taxes had the cigarettes been sold. None of the cigarettes had tax stamps and they weren’t on the state’s Master Settlement Agreement roster, a list of which brands may be legally sold in Oklahoma.
The Tax Commission has asked that the lawsuit be dismissed. It claims the stops were legal, because authorities can stop and search vehicles without a warrant if it is thought those vehicles are carrying contraband cigarettes.
Among Oklahoma tribes, the Muscogee (Creek) Nation is the largest that does not have a tobacco compact with the state. To keep its smokeshops stocked, it has established its own wholesale company – which the state does not recognize – and has received non-Master Settlement Agreement cigarettes from other tribes.
Subscribe to Website or NFIC Hard Copy
|
Archaeology/Remains 
Quote this article on your site
Comment on this Article
